AWESOME!!!! Couldn't b happier,1 hour and 10 mins to switch out headphone jack (had music through one speaker) and battery since I had it open. Really only had to use plastic spudger,metal spudger and 1.5 inch puddy knife. Plastic separators didn't really help,for 3 bucks I'm not complaining. Already had a 00 screwdriver. All told,$43.00 for parts and I have my 120 gig iPod back.

Before starting to pry open the case, look closely at the pictures in steps 21 and 23 to better understand the clips to be released and the location of the clips. It will make the probing with the spudger more effective.

I couldn't agree more about the plastic opening tools! The metal spudger worked loads better when it came to actually opening the device. Yes, the metal tool's tip was much sharper than the plastic (and hence, easier to cut your fingers on if your grip slips) but it was substantially more effective in the end. :)

Don’t do this! The putty knife is too wide and will damage the inside of the case. You can see in the photo for step 19 how the metal clip rail has been bent out of shape. You need to use a narrower tool the will fit between the protrusions on the clip rail (which is where the clips actually are). This video shows a better, albeit more dangerous, method using an x-acto knife. I used the method shown in the video but with a #18 chisel blade on the x-acto knife. With the iPod on its back, I inserted the blade with the beveled side down. Then I pried the side out slightly and peeked through the crack with a flashlight to make sure that the blade was positioned between the protrusions, readjusting as necessary. I used multiple knives to prevent released clips from reengaging. Use this technique at your own risk, and wear adequate hand and eye protection as the blades are very sharp and somewhat brittle.

I used the iFixit Jimmy instead of a putty knife. I also watched the x-acto knife video that Robert Watkins linked to in order to find where the clips are located. I slid the Jimmy into those locations until the tool bottomed out and then move on. I only used the metal spudger (to initially open a gap), the Jimmy (to open the clips), and occasionally a plastic spudger (to hold open gaps while I relocated the metal tools to a new section). Pro tip: Use the Jimmy as a letter opener after you fix your iPod.

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I disagree with the “theory” here. You don’t have to bend the case at all. Watch the x-acto blade video on youtube (it’s linked above in the Step 4 comments). The idea is to slide whatever wide flat tool (putty knife, x-acto blade, iFixit Jimmy, etc…) in between the clip and the body. Setting the iPod flat on the table instead of holding it will help and you won’t cut yourself if a tool slips out. As you disengage clips, you will find that the body will start coming out on it’s own without having to flex your wide tool and bending the case in the process.

Be EXTREMELY careful not to lift too far up and remove the whole piece from the motherboard. You'll never get the pins to line up correctly again without breaking the solder joints and ruining the motherboard if you do. iFixit failed.

Yeah, this battery connector is extremely fragile if you pry too hard you will lift the whole connector plastic off the board. A really, really bad design from Apple having that type of connector like that. The white plastic part is not secure at all to the logic board so when you pry the tab up, you may lift the whole thing up.

You MUST put the warning in the instructions not to pull out the connector. Everything worked perfectly, seriously perfectly, until I went to put the battery cable back in and realized I had popped the connector out and it pulled all of the metal prongs out. Without a way to reconnect metal to metal, this basically just killed my ipod. It's trash now. Such a disappointment. Will not be recommending this site until you fix this one instruction.

Took me a long time to figure it out. The retainer literally pulls up ... straight up, not hinged. The retainer is the (at leeast on mine) grey thingy with a rounded top. I finally got the courage to gently pry it up (2 mm = 1 smidgen) and tthe connector pulled/fell out. Gods know if I'll ever get it back.

I pulled the connector off the motherboard, trying my best to be gentle. The instructions need to be more specific about what to pull and in what direction. The spudger wouldn't grip onto anything and I tried to rock the retainer out, not sure which way it needed to go before releasing. Then, voila, the whole thing came off. That's the end of life for my iPod classic, which I've had since 2008.

2 use tweezers to grip the ribbon along its horizontal run then lift out. Don’t grip the last section that bends into the motherboard connector or you might short circuit the battery conductors, which are not insulated for the last 12mm or so

3 make sure the latch is fully up when you want to connect the ribbon of the new battery, as it falls down very easily and stops the new battery ribbon entering the connector

I released the battery first (with the spudger), which enable the whole case to be butterflied. Then, using a splinter probe with a slight hook lifted the retaining clip, and removed the existing battery lead. Then using a very fine tweezers inserted the new battery cable, and pushed the retaining clip back into place, while holding the cable with the tweezers. All good.

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Right, I thought the way that this was phrased is a tad confusing. Basically, once you've separated the front and back panel, insure all the prong-like-clips around the sides of the back panel are all down - not sticking up after opening the ipod. I skipped the step because it was confusingly put. I ended up successfully swapping the battery, however when I went to put the ipod panels back together, they wouldn't clip back properly. This made it very fiddly. Anyway, hope that helps.

I just want to say that with out this tutorial I could never have taken my iPod apart the biggest help was the addition of the putty knife. It took about 30min cause I took it slow. My iPod is charging and seems to be working thank you

Within the first minute, I pushed a plastic opener through the flesh of my opposite index finger. Within the second minute I peeled back about 3/16" of my index finger nail. Within the third minute I broke the tips off of first one and then the other of the supplied plastic openers. On the fourth minute, I threw the entire kit -- brand new replacement battery included -- in the trash. Thanks for absolutely nothing!! Ken Queale

I have been trying unsuccessfully to get into my ipod to replace the duff battery for a long while. Now, armed with your instructions and the right tools I have done it! (not without considerable frustration with those pesky clips I might add). The plastic spudgers are useless by the way. It took a while to work out how to release the battery ribbon cable and larger picture of the clip action would help. I too found the battery glued to the ribbon cable beneath it. Perseverance, patience and a steady handed are a must for this one. Well done and thank you!

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Bought an extra pair of the blue opening tools ... they both broke trying to open the case. Guess this one was a bit more stubborn. What saved me was the mini-screwdriver on a Leatherman Micro multitool & the iFixIt Metal Spudger.

It IS possible and it's really REALLY tough. The plastic tool included in this set is enough to keep seams open where they show in steps 2 and 3 just wide enough for you to put something else in there. But to start them, I used an exacto like blade. When I did this job, I had 3 regular spudgers, the 2 tools provided here, 4 different style green spudgers from somewhere else, 5 large 'guitar picks' sold here to cut the glue holding new iMac screens to the case, the metal spudger, and an exacto type blade.

It was still an incredibly laborious job and although the iPod is back together and works perfectly, one of the seams is bent out a little.

Firstly, as a few have mentioned here, the 6th-generation classics are more tightly-sealed than their immediate forebears, so the otherwise-useful plastic tools included in the battery-replacement kit won't cut it all by themselves; artful (and careful!) application of the metal spudger tool was also required. Thankfully, years of freelance IT work on recalcitrant Macs of all stripes helped prepare me for this bit of improvisation, even though this was the first time I've taken a crack at an iPod (my own 120GB classic - thin version). Happily, other than twisting that one metal clip near the headphone jack - apparently impossible to avoid - and some very minor cosmetic damage, the balance of work went without a hitch. I speculate why Apple makes us go though this, but that's for another thread. Thanks for the kit and tools!

Don't attempt it, I'm very technologically literate; but I used too much brute force; ruining the case, ionized plastic (as according to battery), and the screen. Pay the extra $ and send it to Apple for professional replacement. You'll thank me later.

I found a very easy way to get the case off. Slice up a Pepsi can and cut out a couple of squares, 2" long by 1" wide, and round of the corners. Then once you have a spudger in, work a piece of the sheet metal into the opening, sliding it in behind the spudger as you work it along the gap. With this one weird trick I I had my ipod open in a couple of minutes without any damage to the case or the retaining clips.

I used this youtube video ( http://youtu.be/6aQn-HkvtvM ) and managed to open my case twice now with no damage at all. I took my sweet time taking it apart and watched it over and over and paused after every step. I didn't end up using any of the tools iFixit provided until I got into the case. The thin blade on an exacto knife worked great you just have to be extremely careful! (I stabbed myself once in the thumb, would recommend wearing leather gloves or something like that) I replaced both my battery and headphone jack no problem! Thanks iFixit and thanks for the people who put together this guide! Saved me a lot of money!

The initial "cracking" of the case was the hardest part. I found I didn't need any of the parts kit (aside from the battery). My handy Swiss army knife provided the needed leverage and the tip to use a cut up soda can as spacers was spot on. I found it wasn't necessary to disconnect the audio cable at all. Reconnecting the power cable took a few tries, but the case popped back on and locked in without any fuss whatsoever (damage to clips/case was negligible). Happy Hunting!

It took some time to get the case apart, but it finally got done. My wife and I worked on it. She is 1000x more patient than I am. The blue tools were worthless. We found a YouTube video where they were using atomic bombs (kidding - it was other tools) and we were finally able to get into the iPod Classic. The instructions on this website were good. Battery seems to be working fine. This makes me despise Apple even more though. I don't like how hard they make it to repair items yourself. I'm not much of a do-it yourselfer, but I try. I did change out a hard drive on a desktop before and that went fairly well.

I'm glad I found this website - I was starting to mourn the impending loss of my iPod Classic 160GB as I have a lot of music (almost 60 GB) on it. Anyway, time will tell, but so far the battery is working great!

I did this and replaced the hard drive at the same time. I do suggest you invest a little more and get the tools that are offered. I own a lot of tools and I was happy that I bought the "tool kit" that iFixit.com offers. Now I have my Tunes back!

Very helpful article. Took me about 1 hour to complete battery replacement. Comments about persevering are helpful. Would be even better if the pics of the ribbon cable connection points were MUCH larger. The plastic separator tools are completely useless in every respect, I had to use small metal screw drivers, scalpel blades and strips of thin metal cut from a beer can (read that last one in other feedback- good advice). Anyway thanks again, all sorted and couldn't have done it without u.

160g thin...used only the jimmy, got it open in 5 min. didn't find it necessary to remove the headphone connection. thanks for everyone's posts and to ifixit for making great tools/parts and a helpful website. god knows how many iPods have been saved here...

This is my second battery replacement on my 120. But after I plugged it into AC power, I ended up with a Flashing (about every second) APPLE on my display. Left it on for an hour, but no change. The cable from the battery to the corner of the iPod is likely the problem. It came out when I was wrestling with it and may not have been reinstalled correctly. Naturally, I worked on a Saturday and will have to wait to find out if I am right. Still, kudos to iFixit. I couldn't have done it without their Guide...

This is my second Battery Replacement. Unfortunately, I ended up pulling the Battery Cable out from the corner and tried to reinstall it. I ended up with a flashing (about every second) APPLE on the display. Couldn't get past it. Will call Mr IFIXIT on Monday

I used dulled Exacto #10 blades and 2 handles in place of the opening tools, this allowed me to leave the blades in place at the latches as I progressed around the ipod. I now keep the blades specificaly for this repair. (I deliberately blunted the blades to avoid damage to the device or my fingers.)

The battery works so great I can't believe it. My iPod used to die if I trued to go through the main menu to a playlist. When I took the old battery out, I saw that the battery was actually warped beyond belief. I switched the battery out easily, changed the hard drive. Then I was able to sync all 12,000 songs in 10 minutes on my iPod, the iPod ran quietly and smoothly, and I charged it completely ONCE and my iPod would not DIE! I was actually trying to get it to die so I don't overcharge it and it took it 3-4 days of playing music for it to finally die.

Should not be this hard to change a battery. That's why Apple sucks it's customers dry with their service fees. Such a thorough explanation and well done though I don't think I'd have the nerve to do it. I really love my Classic too and it needs a new battery I'm sure of it since it doesn't hold a charge. I would be afraid of damaging it. I wish I had other options than sending it out to Apple which would be a total rip off. Excellent demo!

I was able to take care of the battery install without 19 to 23 (no damage to any of the parts nor didn't I need to disconnect HD wire), however after replacing the battery I am at the same place where I was when I started this replacement. Appears my issue was not a bad battery in a firs place. Device is constantly displaying "Charging. Please Wait..." with explanation yellow triangle and battery and the red bottom graphic. Anyone has any idea what the issue is, drop a comment.

This repair guide is missing the instructions for actually replacing the battery! It does not cover the actual disconnecting of the old battery or the reconnection of the new one. Perhaps this is the easiest step, but it still should be included, since that's the whole objective of this repair! I personally have never disconnected an iPod classic battery, nor have I ever connected a new battery in one. How do I know there isn't some particular tricky aspect to the battery connection? To goof up this final step would be a real shame after going through so much trouble to preserve the integrity of the iPod's case that you don't even give any instructions about the battery!

well I was able to replace the battery, but used a razor blade to pry the case out enough to use a putty knife and jeweler screw drivers to pry it open. The plastic tool is crap. It works great, although I cracked the screen in the process. Screen works but it is buggy me that I damaged it. So I ordered a screen for 10 dollars. I am dreading doing this one more time. It is not an easy task. But good tutorial. Thanks

I have an 80gb Ipod Classic. I inserted one of the blades of the plastic tool and then just slid it long the seam all the way to the corner. While prying up the blade on the corner it open up the end slightly. With my finger nails holding the long side open I slid the tool across the short end and around the corner and to the other long side. The whole thing popped open with no damage to small clips on the inside. I removed the battery cable and layed the back side over and replaced the battery without fooling with the other cable. You basically have to work the plastic tool like you would open an oyster.

Guide great. Spudger good. Thin putty knife good. Blue tools next to useless. They are okay at holding the seam open when you get it open, but useless for trying to pry it open. For that I used the spudger to open the seam, then the blue tool to just hold it open while I slid the spudger along to pry it open further up. Secondblue tool in, then putty knife in between. I would also add that after getting up the first side, round the first corner and over the top, this made the seam on the second side impossibly tight, far too tight to open - I ended up letting the first side close up most of the way and getting the spudger in the second side to get one of the blue tools then the other then the putty knife in. Time to replace battery: 20 min.

The guide is very detailed. As other reviews have stated, the only useful tools are the included metal spudger and the non-included putty knife(I got a 1 1/8" but you could go larger or smaller, mostly just used the edge of it for prying apart enough to get the spudger in). I got this kit primarily so that I'd know I had the correct battery. The package is not OEM but it's the same PN, higher capacity, fits, and it works.

All in all the procedure was pretty easy, but I do similar stuff for a living. I looked at 4 steps, winged the rest and it turned out great. If you follow the guide and are careful then it should be hard to go wrong. I spent more time looking for somewhere to buy the battery than I did replacing it.

Also I thought I might have had an intermittent connector(which goes to the control board) but the contacts were just dirty. My iPod now works like a champ.

Thanks for the super detailed instructions; I bought all the recommended tools and they all worked well. Just one request: in Step 18, please make the images larger, clearer and include a drawing if possible, of the tiny cable retainer. I just put my tweezers under the white part and lifted it up, but is the white part with the black retainer piece supposed to stay on the 5 contacts, and just the ribbon come out? Your photo in #18 is not clear at all as to how and what to lift up. So the white block and the black retainer both came out, along with 2 prongs which are shaped like the Greek letter mu or the Hebrew letter taw, upside down! And the other three are a bit loose. Now it seems the only way to get at them with a soldering iron (!!) is to take off the framework side rail all around the front part of the iPod. It looks like I have to get the whole logic board out to repair the broken and loose pins.

Question: is it better to try to find a new logic board than try to solder the pins back in?

Looking forward to fixing my ipod! Im ordering kit plus some extra tools off Amazon. Thanks for supplying people with what we need and the education to do it ourselves. My Classic is 10 years old. I do not want to lose function as ive not come close to filling it.

Good instructions, but as others have said, on the 160gb Gen 6 iPods the blue tools are worthless (sorry ifixit) and it can be a bit difficult to replace the battery beacuase of the Gen 6’s different construction. However, if you have any mechanical inclination and PATIENCE, you’ll be fine completing this repair. Tools I used were to separate panels were a razor blade (like you would use in a Stanley Utility Knife and two tooth scaler tools. They’re used for scraping tarter from dog/cat teeth but they worked fantastic for separating the case. Here’s a link to what they look like/are;

I used the razor blade to CAREFULLY begin separating the case similar to steps 2 and 3. Once case was opened a bit, I gently inserted one of the scalers. Once one was in place, I inserted the other and just worked my way around the seam gently prying the case apart. Came apart fine and the case was not damaged at all. Went right back together and works like new!

I opened it with a combination of cutting up a plastic soda 2ltr bottle (based on someone else’s suggestion using a coke can) in 2cm by 3cm pieces and using them to wedge in the sides while I used a Stanley knife to get them in there in the first place. This way you can cut up as many as you want and leave them in so that the cover doesn’t slip back in.

The advantage is that the plastic is so thin yet rigid enough in the 2x3cm size you find that it can push in just as well as some of these pro tools (that normally are fecked afterwards anyway)

It was my first ever go and took around 20mins. I’ve patience to burn, when I want. This is a job you DON’T want to rush. TIP. Just take your time. Most of that 20mins was cutting the pieces to size. I experimented with different sizes but 2x3cm is a good size.

Now to find a battery supplier that won’t take a month to get here in Ireland.

Ipod Classic 160g. Well that was a challenge. The hardest part is getting it open. I had to find a few of my own flat tools to get it opened. I wouldn’t say “very” difficult, but I would say difficult. My jewelers light made it a little easier too. Apple wants $299 to do what i just did for $20. Thanks ifixit!!!!

I wasn’t able to use the plastic opening tools. I used a razor scraper to open the gap enough to get the putty knife in there. I bent up the first side a bit—it’ll never quite close right again—but it just back in my car as my car stereo hard drive. The rest came open pretty quickly once I worked in the putty knife. The putty knife was just a hardware store blade—nothing special. Reconnecting the battery cable was a bit tricky; I used a pair of dull tweezers. Now it’s back together and working, though not quite as pretty; not as hard as I expected.

I am an old school tech, former Olivetti , Wang, and WWTS tech and i appreciate all the reviews on here. Why i say this is upon reviewing what worked and what did not work so well i rummaged around in my tool bag and while a splodger is great tool it’s still one size and the putty knife may cause more damage. I found for my A1238 iPOD two old Blue Point FBM-320 feeler gauges (Snap-on-tool equivalent: Gauge, Feeler, Metric, General Use, 20 blades (.05 mm thru 1.00 mm) (Blue-Point®) )

I had to use the two of them, and i am not exaggerating it took literally 5 mines to disengage front from back. the feelers are of course different thickness and make it easy to insert then I just applied the rocking technique all the way around left side 1st face up from the middle. It appeared they are the perfect width to hit each of clips 1st time. Hope this helps and thanks all for you feed back 160gb device with many memories saved thanks to all of you…. Thank again

Approximately an hour using the wrong tools the first time. After I had the right tools it only took about 30-40 minutes total taking time. I recommend this video for disassembly. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aQn-Hkv...

Buy 3 exacto knives (about $3-5 each). I recommend this, but make sure to wear a good glove with grip on opposite hand. You might dull down the blade by lightly scraping on rough surface (concrete), but this can break the blade, so I used extra care & used them sharp. If you have a Gen 6 ipod the seal ‘is’ really tight, so I took a pocket knife & ran it along the right side to free up any glue & get the opening started. Again be very careful of slipping off. Then follow the video. I bought one blue “ifixit opening tool” that came in handy after I got the front to lift away from the back & slid it along the side. Good because it doesn’t go in deep to damage anything. Tweezers to dislodge the battery cable & a needle nose pliers to bend the clips down when closing. (and 1 band-aid).

Did it! The plastic levers weren’t quite strong enough to get into the seam, so I used a set of three convex Exacto-knife blades. (Look on youtube cited above for guidance).

A tip: wrap all but the last 1 cm of the exacto knife blade in tape (masking, duct, whatever) so that you have minimum sharp cutting edge exposed and DEFINITELY do this work on a table or some other solid surface.

Once open, the only hitch was the battery-motherboard connector. As several previous posts note, don’ just pull on it. CRUCIAL: The brown-grey plastic bit is on a toggle. Just use the little plastic piece to push it back (away from the wire, towards the metal frame -you’ll feel a little click) and the wire comes out easily. Repeat, pushing in opposite direction to attach battery link wire afterwards.

Didn’t undo the earphone wire. Putting the thing back together was easy-peasy. Wife is in next room blasting music from the iPod on the stereo. Thank you, iFixit!

I’d like to add that I almost exclusively used the iSesamo (a fantastic tools) with the help of a couple of plastic Opening Tool and one Standard Spudger to make some way for the iSesamo to slide in vertically; I started from the bottom near the power USB connector (admittedly the thinner upper part of the metal case window got a little bent outward but it’s still mendable), I then proceeded with the iSesamo around the lower corner, up to the side opposite the audio jack connector, and on to the upper corner near the Hold slider; I then moved a little towards the audio jack connector but all the lower side and the left side was practically free, so the upper part of the iPod got as if unhinged and came disengaged without even touching the right side of the case. Besides the already mentioned small bend on the lower thin side of the cut, no other relevant damage was done. The iSesamo is an essential tool to use, yes with care, but once you get it in the right slot it can easily slide its way through it all.

I am really thankful for this tutorial, and Ifixit ! I just saved my 160Go Ipod by changing the battery. I just did one mistake, while ungluing the battery, the spudger slipped and I snapped the ribbon connector of the lock/unlock switch, which does not operate any more. Could have been worse… Be warned, take your time ! it is exactly as it is described above.

It took longer for the battery to start charging for the first time, but it is now back !